Coasting
by BlinkByou
Summary: Riku, an ex-bully, never expected to see Sora, his former prey, suddenly appear on his TV as an upcoming skateboarding star. Nor did he expect what seeing the cheerful boy would do to his heart: make it skip three beats and hammer 'till morning. slash.
1. Prologue: Beya Wing Bay City

--

"Never be bullied into silence. Never allow yourself to be made a victim. Accept no one's definition of your life, but define yourself."

-Harvey S. Firestone

--

It's always pointless ceremonies like these that bring about the weirdest feelings. Well I guess this ceremony isn't that pointless, I am graduating after all, but you could say I'm the only one that's not excited. Today is the day I choose my direction in life. Do I stay? Do I leave? Do I forget all these people surrounding me? Do I cling to them? So many choices, so much time.

I'm sitting in the fourth row, my tassel is tickling my nose and my gold graduation cap, I'm sure, looks absolutely pathetic against my silver locks. We're one hour into the ceremony, the valedictorian, a brainy looking creature that I've never seen before in my life, is struggling to choke out her speech. The students in the audience are hiding smiles and giggles, pretending as if they are mature adults now that they are eighteen and official. Such liars.

My mom and dad are sitting on the first set of bleachers to my left. I'm sure that my mom bullied her way to the front because they always arrive late to everything. But here they are, snapping photos of this memorable event and crying fake tears of sadness that secretly are tears of joy because the minute I get home they'll hand me a suitcase and a crapload of money and send me off. It's not like they're not loving parents, but I'm the youngest child of four and they _are_ getting old. After the valedictorian stumbles away from the podium, the principle announces that we will now watch a slideshow slash video chronicling our time here at Vince Square Academy. We all settle back in our seats and cringe as little miniature versions of us bounce across the screen. The problem with going to a K-12 school is that we have to watch ourselves age from six years old to eighteen years old. Oh, the growth spurts, the acne, the busty eleven year olds and the flat chested sixteen year olds, the extremely tall, the extremely short, the nasally voices, the outdated clothes. It's almost two embarrassing to watch.

But then I see him.

The video is showing events that happened in the second grade. It was the old playground in the back of the school that was condemned a couple of years ago after several couples where caught doing the dirty on some of the equipment. It showed several people I knew; my friends Tidus, Wakka, Selphie, my ex-girlfriend Kairi and some others I don't feel like mentioning. But I can't pay any attention to how cute we were then when I can clearly see him in the corner of the film by himself.

His name was Sora James-Maverick. The self-proclaimed 'weed.' The kid who everyone hated but could never find a reason as to why they did. He was a poor kid; he wore the same clothes to school every day because he didn't have anything else. He didn't have a backpack, he carried his books in his arms with two rubber bands wrapped around them to keep them together. Because Vince Square Academy is a charter school, we have no bus system. Everyone's parent's were responsible in getting their children to school whether it be a city bus pass, carpooling, or the parents driving the kids themselves. Sora walked to school. He lived five miles away from the school and he walked to school. Well actually, let me rephrase that, he 'coasted'.

If there was only one thing that I could distinctly remember about Sora it would have to be his skateboard. It was an old castaway that Sora had found in a dumpster. The thing was more duct tape than board, but it worked. It always worked. Sora was known for his daredevil personality. He'd broken his wrists, his leg, fractured several fingers and gotten a concussion for all of his skateboarding nonsense. We all thought he was trying to kill himself. But if he was, it wasn't working. The more he fell, the better he became.

As the youngest of four children, I was used to being bullied. My older brothers loved to torment me and make me cry. I used to hate them for it. So I guess anyone could say that it was normal for me to want to pick on someone else. I didn't have a younger sibling so I had to go outside and find someone smaller than me to push around. Sora was the perfect target for so many reasons. One, he was poor. Nobody cares about the poor. Two, he had no parents to tell on me to. He was a foster kid, constantly bouncing from home to home when the social workers found out he wasn't being fed or was being physically abused. And three, he smiled too much. Like I hated my brothers, I hated his smile.

So around third grade I began to mess with him. My friends, who followed me like dogs with their masters, happily joined in. It started with name-calling and then slowly escalated to slapping, pushing, shoving and finally, punching. I don't know why I did it; I just know that it gave me a sense of power, a sense of safety. I felt like I was on top of the world every time Sora fell to the ground. But it didn't last because he kept standing back up. And so I punched him back down. And then he stood back up. And it would repeat this way until the bell rang signaling for us to file back into the classrooms.

I guess that's where he got the name the 'weed' from. He was just like one. You can stomp, spray and tear out a weed as much as you'd like but it will always come back. He would _always_ stand up when we pushed him down.

The last time I saw the weed was eighth grade. The deadly disease called hormones was quickly making its rounds through my class. While some were blessed with the 'good hormones' such as height for boys, and breasts for girls, others like Sora, were cursed with the 'bad hormones'. I was lucky to be one of the 'good hormones' candidates. All of the sudden, I was no longer just another kid. I was popular. I started playing in the school basketball team and my muscles, along with my height, started growing. Sora on the other hand, wasn't growing. He was still as short as he was when he was ten and skinny as a green bean. It was in eighth grade that other kids started making him their target. But like his body hadn't changed, nor had his personality. He was still cheerful, considerate, friendly and adventurous.

We didn't notice these features about him until he was gone. After a couple of weeks of not seeing his face or hearing the low lull of his skateboard against the smooth concrete, I started to ask around about him. Wakka told me he had been hit by a car and that he'd seen it himself. Selphie told me he'd drowned in the local pool. Tidus told me he got kicked out of school for spraying graffiti in the library. My teacher Ms. Tifa told me that he had moved.

Like all adolescents, death sounded more exciting than a simple move, so we all believed he had died under some 'unexplained circumstances' and moved on with our lives.

The slideshow finished without me paying any attention to any of it. The rest of the student body, however, sighed a deep breath of relief. The ceremony finally closed with each of us walking up to receive our diplomas and finished with all of us throwing up our caps in celebration.

I said a few goodbye's to my closest friends, and avoided the large amounts of 'fake' friends I had. As I'm exit the building, my parents run up to me and give me a large bear hug, telling me how proud they are of me and that I definitely deserve my graduation present for my good grades. They give me several brochures showing potential destinations spots. My gift was a two-way ticket to anywhere in the world that I wanted to go.

As we're riding home, my parents start to gloat about me in the front street, telling me how proud they are of me and how I am so special and the most beautiful child in the world. I don't really listen to them though, I'm thinking about where I might want to go with my ticket.

Should I go to Blooming Rose Island? I've heard there are a lot of beautiful women there. I smirk. I can't help but be a player sometimes. No, maybe I should go to Lancaster Rock. The sunset there I've heard is something everyone must see before they die. To put it simply, I have a lot thinking to do.

When we get home, I excuse myself to go upstairs to my room, wanting to do a little research on my destination spot. My parents smile at me and tell me that we'll be going out to dinner in about four hours and that my brothers will be joining us.

As I enter my room, I quickly grab my laptop and flip the TV on for some background noise. I was just about to click on the main website for Lancaster Rock when I hear something on the television that can't possibly be true.

"And here he is, Sora James-Maverick. Sora, how does it feel to beat the legend Roxas Forest in his highest ranked event?"

"Ah, I dunno, it feels great." Came the cheerful, laid-back voice of the weed. It was deeper now, more mature and…incredibly seductive. I swallowed the spit in my mouth and stared at the boy. No longer was he a boy, in the body sense, he was still slim but taller now and had very well defined muscles that were accentuated by his _very_ tight muscle shirt. I can't seem to take my eyes off of him. Not only am I surprised that he's still alive, but damn, he's fucking gorgeous. And that's a lot coming from a straight guy.

"So Sora, we still have two weeks of competition left. You've won your first event, how will this affect your other five?" The reporter asked him.

"I dunno, man. I'm just going to keep trying my hardest, put this one behind me and focus on the next ones, you know. Keep coasting." Sora said with a smile before walking away from the reporter. I can't believe I ever hated his smile.

"And that was Sora James-Maverick, a must-watch in the free style tournaments here in Beya Wing Bay City and winner of the street scene tournament, beating out former number one rank, Roxas Forrest. Eric, back to you."

I mute my television set and sit in utter silence for several minutes until my mom walks into my room.

"So honey, I know this is soon, but have you decided on a destination yet?" She asks me while excitedly bouncing from foot to foot. I nod, and she asks me where I want to go.

I know it's irrational, stupid, and probably not the best destination spot in the world because I've never heard of it before, but I'm going. And if she asks me for a reason, I honestly don't have one. I tend to listen to my heart though, and right now it's beating a mile a minute. So I say without a doubt…

"Beya Wing Bay City."

--

A/N:So I was going to post this next week, but after looking at my school schedule for next week, I'd be too busy. So here it is early. I can't tell you how happy I am to write something in my new writing style. Plus it's nice to write something different than angst. Anyway, tell me what you think.


	2. Chapter 1: Chicken Wings and a Set Scene

"I put up with you because I love you. Not because I care about you."

-Unknown

--

I hate family get-togethers.

There's just something about sitting at a large table in a lame restaurant with my over-dramatic family that really, _really_, turns me off. Don't get me wrong, I love my family, but being with all of them for more than three hours at a time is my recipe for hell.

You see, if I didn't look like the spitting image of my father, I would've sworn my mom cheated on him and conceived me with another man. I am _nothing_ like the rest of my family. It's not vanity, it's the truth. If I didn't love them I would instantly label my father as mental, my mother as ADHD, and my brothers either demented or schizophrenic.

Case in point, I'm sitting here in Bram's Boardwalk, a lame little restaurant that makes average food but charges champagne money for it, in the middle of an all out argument on the topic of real fairies. Apparently my brother Daichi has had a 'vision' of fairy that has told him he will have seventeen children with six different women. The scary thing about this is that both of my parents believe him.

"I'm telling you, mom, It was real. I really saw her." Daichi says, his eyes big and serious as he waves around a chicken wing.

"Daichi, don't be stupid. Fairies don't exist." My oldest brother, Kan says, while loudly smacking his own poultry in gusto. I cringe. What a horrible, nasty, revolting, absolutely sickening sight. "Listen to your older brother; it's vampires that are the real ones." Kan continues before gesturing towards me. "Ain't I right, Riku?"

I frown and look down at the bird on my plate. I am suddenly not hungry anymore. If for some reason I ever become fat and need to lose weight, Kan would be the go to man. Watching him eat a meal is enough to send your appetite across the ocean and never see it return.

"Both of you are idiots." My second oldest brother and twin to Kan, Ran, says. I choke back a laugh. Of all the people to call someone an idiot…

"God is the only magical creature that exists." He finishes, smiling as if he won something. The table suddenly becomes quiet.

Now, religion is common to our city. My parent's themselves follow the main religion on the island. I myself am an agnostic and have no opinion nor care to have an opinion on such affairs. In actuality, Ran's comment wouldn't be stupid if for one thing: he thinks _he's_ god.

I rest my case.

My family is made up of lunatics. Which means I must be a lunatic as well. Wow.

"Boys enough of this." My mother suddenly exclaims, though only a minute ago she was enthusiastically listening to Daichi talk of his sudden discovery of real fairies. "Today is Riku's big day."

My brothers glance at me, grunt, and then turn back to their chicken. I feel so important.

"Guess what we got him for his graduation present?" My father says, looking up from his coloring book. Yes, my father enjoys ordering from the children's menu just to receive the little coloring books and other childish crap made to keep children quiet.

Kan, ever the jealous one, stops eating a looks up. I thank a god I don't believe in for granting me a few seconds of peace from his horrendous eating habits.

"What he get?" He asks, glaring at me in that older brother way. I stick out my tongue. I know my gift is better than what they got when they graduated. Kan and Ran got a used car that they crashed two days after receiving and Daichi got money and…condoms.

"A roundtrip ticket to anywhere in the world." My father says proudly. Kan's mouth drops and Ran's chicken wing flies across the table and smacks me in the head. Before I can yell at him, Daichi kicks my crotch under the table.

Hell no. I've had it.

"Goddamit you jealous fuckers!" I screech, grabbing at my crotch indecently. The restaurant is suddenly quiet and my mother looks flabbergasted. I ignore her, grab my chicken wing and proceed to beat the snot out of Daichi with it.

Scratch what I said before; I think we're all insane.

--

After getting kicked out of the restaurant, my dad whimpering as he was forced to leave his drawing and my brothers frantically trying to gather as many chicken wings as their pockets could hold, we all head down the city boardwalk for a walk in the park. Well more like a walk for my mother, father and I and a game of tag for my brothers. I swear their brains stopped growing at age six.

I watch in annoyance as Daichi runs through the darkening park, chicken wings falling out of his pockets along with…condoms?! Heavens to god. Kan and Ran are chasing him, looking like deranged squirrels and howling like pregnant dogs. It's highly disturbing and I'm not the only one that thinks this. All of the other people in the park look scared as well.

I distance myself from them, though it's obvious we're brothers from our similar silver hair and ocean colored eyes. To keep my mind of their idiocy, I think of something that holds more appeal. Well, more like someone.

Sora James-Maverick. I can't help but smile as I think back to seeing him on TV a couple of hours ago. I'd never admit to anyone, but for some reason, I'm rather attracted to the 'new weed.' I'm not gay, but then again, I think he's very attractive. No, not attractive, fucking gorgeous. Does that make me gay? In my opinion, no. I'm not attracted to boys. Period. But if I told my brothers or my friends that I thought he was hot, then yes, I would be gay.

I hate labels.

I'm interrupted out of my thoughts very cruelly. One second I'm walking behind my parents, daydreaming, having some good thoughts, and the next I'm on the ground with Daichi straddling me. He's grinning like a maniac and something is stuck in his teeth. Disgusting.

"Get off me you idiot." I growl, shoving him off of me. I stand up and dust my pants, frowning when I see a grass stain. Damn, these were new jeans too.

Kan and Ran run up and shove me back down. I frown and stand back up, kicking them in the shins. "Would you all grow up?!" I yell, "Fuckin' act your age."

Daichi chuckles and shoves me, though softly as not to be kicked like my oldest brothers. "We're just playing, Riku."

"Yeah, you deserve it though." Kan says while rubbing his shin. A mangled chicken wing falls out of his pocket in the process. Those poor birds. They'd be horrified to know that they died only to be dismembered, fried, and then're-killed' in my brothers' no doubt filthy pants.

"And why is that?" I ask, with a smirk. Kan frowns and rolls his eyes.

"You know why. Mom and Dad didn't give me something like your present. I got a used car. And I had to share it."

"Yeah, well you're a twin. You should be used to it." I say nonchalantly. Daichi glares at me and crosses his arms.

"Well what about me, I got 500 munny and a pack of condoms." Daichi spits out, hitting me with spittle that has…particles in it. I dry heave.

"Step away from me, Daichi, you're disgusting." I growl, wiping my face. "And you needed those condoms, you got three girls pregnant before you even graduated."

"No I didn't, they had tumors…and I pay money because…I pity them." Daichi says slowly, and firmly as if I believe him.

"So where you gonna go?" Kan smacks out before I can yell at Daichi for being so despicable in calling his own children tumors.

"Beya Wing Bay City." I say with a smirk. Surely none of them have heard of the city…

I am proven wrong immediately.

Kan gasps and several chicken wings fall out of his pocket as he gestures madly and stutters like the fool he is. "W-what?! I'm going there too!"

Hell no. "Wait…what?" I choke out. There is no way Kan is going to Beya Wing Bay City. _I'm_ supposed to be going. By myself.

"Yeah, I got these VIP tickets from my friend who works over there for the Beya Wing Extreme Sports Tournament. They sold out months ago." Kan says animatedly. "We're going up there in two days for the start of the BMX tournaments."

Hold on.

Something just clicked.

"Wait a second. So these extreme sports…do they include skateboarding?" I ask slowly.

"Hell yeah. All kinds of extreme shit. Hey, you know there's actually a kid who used to go to Vince Square that's competing in some of the skating events. I don't know his name, but he's amazing!" Kan yells excitedly. My heart stops.

The weed.

Suddenly I realize a grave mistake I made in my earlier sporadic thinking processes. How the hell was I actually going to meet Sora? How was I going to somehow get myself into an event that had sold out months ago? Why hadn't I thought of this before? Was I…dare I say it…love struck?

"VIP…so does that mean you get to meet some of the competitors?" I ask, trying to gather as much information as I could from him before he turned neurotic.

"Yeah, you basically get to walk around in the back where all of their trailers are and stuff. You get to see lots of them there."

Perfect.

"How many tickets do you have?" I blurt out before even thinking about it.

"Uh, three. Me and my friend Shen are going."

"And the third ticket…?" I ask, formulating a plan in my mind.

"Eh, I dunno. If Ran wants it he can have it." Ran glances up from his half eaten, mangled piece of chicken. I quickly swat him on the head and shove him away.

"Hell no. I'll take it." I say, before Ran can protest. Kan shrugs his shoulders and then grabs a chicken wing out of his pocket.

"Ok, sure." He says, "We leave in two days."

I nod. "Thanks bro." Kan doesn't answer. His attention is now on Daichi who is trying to steal his chicken from him. They start slapping each other and screeching like baby birds.

I walk away with a smile on my face. I no longer care about their attitudes and stupidity. Who cares if I have to go with my insane brother? Kan just unknowingly made my newfound 'dream' possible. I'm going to meet Sora.

--

We part ways as we head to our cars. Kan and Ran, who share an apartment on the east side of the City, actually act civilized and give my mom, my dad and I hug before they leave. Daichi, who lives on the next island over, follows them because he just realized that he hadn't bought a roundtrip ticket. We all know this isn't true though. In actuality, Daichi really misses us and can't bear to leave so soon. It's actually a comforting thought that he's homesick because he never acts like he is.

It's quiet in the car, as we head home. Mom and Dad get really sentimental when my brothers leave. Mom once told me it was like letting go of them all over again. Dad, who is more emotional than the average man, feels the same way. I wonder if I'll feel the same way when I have children.

As we pull up to the house, mom and dad say goodnight to me and head to their room. I head upstairs, grab my laptop, and once again turn on the TV for some background noise. This time a game of soccer is on. Although I love soccer, I ignore it because I have research to do.

Clicking on to the search engine, I type in the weed's name and click 'search pictures'. I swear he has become an infatuation. When my screen loads, my heart skips a beat and starts hammering like it did early afternoon. Dozens of pictures pop up of the weed. Some of them show him in the middle of complex skateboarding tricks, others show him signing autographs and some show him smiling with large groups of people. But the ones that catch my attention the most are pictures of him with a red-headed boy. The other boy is much taller than him, slim, and has extremely spiky looking hair that is almost wilder than Sora's own. I click on of the pictures and it links me to an article that makes my heart start beating even faster than it had before.

"_Upcoming skateboarding star, Sora James-Maverick, comes out as bisexual with BMX star boyfriend Axel Slade." _

I stare at that line, re-reading it over and over again. No way.

Now, as a straight man, I shouldn't be interested in this and I probably should feel a little uncomfortable. Which is why my thoughts wander back to what I was thinking about in the park. Am I not as straight as I think I am? Do I have feelings towards the weed that shouldn't be there?

I grow uneasy with this thought, and close the page. I'm not gay and never will be…

But that thought doesn't hold me for long, as in the next five minutes I'm reading the article with fervor while simultaneously booking a flight to Beya Wing Bay City. Damn my insecurities to hell. I'm going to meet Sora.

--

A/N: I hate snow. It's freakin' dropping like crazy where I live. Anyway, this chapter has a lot of dialogue and a lot on Riku's family for a reason. So don't get mad if there's not a lot of Sora interaction or info. It's coming. Anyway, hope you like it. I'm having a short delay on the prologue to my other story because I need to rewrite a few things. Hopefully I'll have it up in the next week.

Oh, and thanks for the feedback on the Black Petal! I really appreciate it.


	3. Chapter 2: Realize It and Fix It

Mistakes are a fact of life. It is the response to error that counts."

-Nikki Giovvani

Last night I came to the decision that I am a stupid fool. I was up late trying to sleep but not being able to because of my excitement about leaving the next day for Beya Wing Bay city. It was as I was staring up at my ceiling that it hit me.

I had hurt Sora in the past.

I don't know why this fact hadn't made itself present earlier. I was too busy being infatuated with my new crush and desperately wanting to meet him. I disregarded the fact that I used to bully him and only focused on the fact that we were older and what happened in the past didn't mean anything now.

How wrong I am.

Not only do I vividly remember being bullied by my older brothers and their friends, but I remember the pain that came with it. A biting pain that eats at your heart. How could I assume that Sora wouldn't feel at least bitter towards me, better yet, hate me?

At around four I gave up trying to sleep and put on my jogging clothes. Working out in the wee morning hours has always been my favorite part of my day. There's just something about being up when all of the world is asleep. I find it refreshing to be able to focus on my thoughts and feelings without anyone interrupting and giving their opinions. I often leave the house around 5 AM and stay out till the sun rises, only returning when the neighbors start to say hello.

It's one of those mornings, as usual. I leave the house and start jogging down the street, my mind is empty and I just focus on the sounds of my shoes hitting the ground. It's dark outside and the streetlights are my only source of light. Like stars in space, it's almost surreal. Sometimes when I run like this in the morning I really _do_ feel like I'm in another world. And when I was younger I used to want to be in that 'other world' so badly. I didn't like the world when I was young, it confused me and I often felt left out by the people in this world. It was part of the reason why I used to beat up Sora. One was out of anger with myself, two because of envy for his wonderful personality despite his hardships, and three because I needed to feel powerful to make myself feel better.

I never had an excuse to hate myself. I had loving parents, annoying but equally loving brothers, great friends and a wonderful, large home. I never had to want for anything, I'd always had it. My parents wouldn't hesitate to sacrifice their lives' for me. I'm athletic, talented, attractive, and charismatic. Everything anyone less fortunate than me would want. So when I think back to my childhood, I become so confused. Why did I hate myself at such a young age? What was wrong with me?

As a child, I felt alone. I had three older brothers that usually hung out with themselves, unless it was to pick on me. This was normal though, all of the young island children had older siblings who bothered them. So I befriended these other island children and we, like our older siblings, began to pick on our younger siblings. This was normal as well. But in my case, and a few other children who had no younger siblings, it was different. The need to be above someone else is present in all children. It's not innocent, but that's the way kids are, and as I grew older it became harder to handle. I felt as if I was being pushed down and didn't have a leg to stand up on.

My mother and father used to tell me never to call anyone names or put people down. My parents told my brothers the same thing, and they obeyed them, except when with me. But we were siblings and siblings fought, so my parents didn't think much of it. One day, however, I went against what they had told me and slapped a smaller boy in the face. It was a hot summer day and the island children were all at the beach trying to stay cool. Parents on my island are very laidback and trust their children being alone, so no adults were present. I was playing a game with a couple of my friends when a little boy with spiky brown hair asked to join in. I'd never seen him before, but I instantly hated him. He had this sunny smile and beautiful blue eyes that put the sky to shame. And he was…just _good._ He was the nicest person I had ever met. He didn't put the younger children down, he played with them. He didn't throw a fit when people left him out, he shrugged his shoulders and found someone else. He didn't hit me back when I hit, or cry when I called him names. He smiled, albeit small, and walked away.

That's what made it so easy for me to hurt him. He didn't make me feel guilty.

Nobody really cared that I bullied him. Sora was poor and had no parents. He wasn't worth much in the school's eyes so they didn't waste time on him. He never made it through the day without an insult or shove by either me or someone else. He wasn't the brightest student in school, and looking back I can understand why. He didn't get any help on his homework at home and his foster parents wouldn't pay for him to see a tutor. I remember him failing all of his subjects in fifth grade, although deep down we all know he shouldn't have failed English. Sora was wonderful at English.

Sora was very insightful. Most of the students, including me, thought he was stupid and wasn't capable of thinking deeply. He proved us wrong one day when we were assigned to write our final paper in fifth grade on our favorite color. Now, one wouldn't think that writing a paper on your favorite color would require deep thinking, but when I think about it now, I had a hard time coming to a decision, and why. On the day we were to present our papers Sora was chosen first to present. He had walked up to the front of the room with a smile, like always, and just started talking.

"_I don't have a favorite color."_ He had started. Immediately we began giggling, all of us calling him stupid under our breaths. You see, our school was strict, you couldn't think outside the box because creativity was not promoted and unfortunately, Sora's essence was creative. We knew from that statement that Sora had failed his assignment and would probably fail the class because of it.

"_It's too hard for me to pick a favorite color because all of the colors complement each other. Like if you look at the ocean, it's a pretty blue. But if you stick sand next to it, a light brown, it makes the blue and the brown even more attractive. And if you put a gold sun over the ocean that's sitting in a sky of aqua, it makes the land below stunning. Not to mention all the shades of green that the plants add to the scene. But what really makes me not able to pick a favorite color is people. I love people and people come in all different shades. They all have different eye colors from deep browns to light blues, and their skin tones range from rich ebony to pale cream. Not to mention all the different hair colors. I couldn't possibly pick a favorite color and say one is better than the other. So in conclusion, I don't have a favorite color."_

I hadn't felt stupid in a long time, but walking up to do my presentation on my favorite color, silver, seemed so ridiculous after that presentation. Instead of telling him he did a good job, we hated him. And to our sick delight, a month later we found out that Sora hadn't passed English and like all his other classes, he would repeat it. I didn't matter that he had an A going into that final paper, all that mattered was that we students hated him, the teacher hated him, and we _all_ hated him for being more insightful than ourselves. Ah, jealousy.

The last time I saw Sora was when he wished me luck in an empty locker-room. It was the day before my first big game in eighth grade. I had stayed late to practice shooting some hoops and Sora had stayed late to be yelled at by our gym teacher about being too short and skinny to be any use in gym. We both headed to the locker room to change at the same time when my coach told us he had to lock up. I wasn't in the mood to pick on Sora because I was too worried about my game. Sora of course, noticed this about me.

"_Hey,"_ He had said softly. I had looked up and raised an eyebrow at him.

He smiled, like he always did, while zipping up his hoodie. _"Good luck on your game."_ And then he was gone. And he remained gone from my mind until I saw him on the graduation PowerPoint where he suddenly took over my mind like a plague.

These were the memories that kept me from sleeping last night. The memory of that first day on the beach hit me like a tidal wave and the memories that followed with even more force. But it's the realization that me and Sora are nowhere near friends that makes me cringe. I suddenly feel like refunding my ticket and staying home. I have no real reason for seeing Sora but to indulge in my little crush. Now that I think about it, I don't know why I hadn't thought about Sora's reaction to me randonomly showing up at his skating event. I have never said a kind word in my life to Sora, and now here I am, leaving for Beya Wing Bay City tonight to go and see him. I wouldn't be surprised if Sora doesn't know who I am. Hell, I forgot about him until I saw that slideshow. But something tells me he wouldn't forget about me or the others that bullied him.

As strong as he was, he had to have had scars. Both physical and emotional. And scars are deep and they never go away.

So that's why I'm out here jogging in the wee hours of the morning, trying to get my thoughts together. I have a decision to make. I can either stay home, or go and apologize.

I stop in place as I suddenly see the sun start to peak out from behind trees. So many colors. Pink, orange, red, yellow…it reminds me of Sora.

Without a second thought, I make my decision. I decide hat I wouldn't be my typical self. Typical Riku would've headed straight to the cashiers office at the airport to refund his ticket. Typical Riku wouldn't apologize to someone for his actions so long ago. Typical Riku wouldn't be thinking about how to win someone's friendship, but instead be thinking about how to make someone win _his _friendship. No, I won't be typical Riku. I will board that plan tonight with a plan in motion. I will find Sora, apologize, and hopefully try to befriend him. I will right my wrongs and get rid of this guilty feeling that has plagued me all night.

I will make it right.

As I watch the colorful sun rise slowly in the east, I feel a little bit better. A little bit stronger and a little bit wiser. I feel like a piece of me, though small, has finally matured. I head home feeling refreshed like I usually do after a good run, but this time it's for other reasons.

There's something about realizing your mistakes you've made that makes you either weaker or stronger. As a child, realization made me weaker. I would blame my mistakes on others to deflect them, to make me feel better. But now, as an adult, there's something about realizing these mistakes, knowing I am wrong, and finding a way to fix them that is so liberating yet difficult at the same time.

Because I am a proud person, apologizing won't be easy for me. Though I feel regret in my heart, I know my mind will tell me otherwise when I see him face to face. I know that my walls will surge up when I see him and my cocky and rude side will try to let itself loose. But here, in the morning sun, I know I'm stronger than the old Riku.

I'm going to fix things between me and Sora. My pride can sit on the sidelines for once.

--

A/N: Just a quick comment to you all. This story is not going to be as long as the Fallen Portrait (probably around 15 chapters compared to 40 in the Fallen Portrait). So if you think this story is moving too fast our anything, please note that it's for a reason. To be honest, this story just isn't going to be as deep as the Fallen Portrait. It's not an angst fic, which I usually write. It's supposed to be light and carefree so there will be very few deep chapters. I know this is a big difference from what I usually write, but because of my past depressed moods, I think its better I write something lighthearted right now. So I hope you don't mind.

In response to rutger5000's review: Thanks for the criticism! :) I value your opinion, though I don't personally think the gay part is OOC because there seemed to be a lot of hints of it in the KH games (just my opinion). Anyway, I hope this chapter sort of meets your expectations. :)

Thanks for the reviews!


	4. Chapter 3: Same Old Sora

Note: For some reason this got deleted early...don't know why. Sorry 'bout that.

You've got so much love in you. I'm amazed that I'm talkin' to you.

-The Rocket Summer

--

There's a reason why I only like to see my brothers twice a year. Once for my birthday and once for Christmas. So sitting here on a plane squashed between my brother Kan and his obnoxious and extremely large friend Shen is close to unbearable. Not only do they have the brains of elementary children, but they eat like them, smell like them, and play pranks like them. We've been on the plane to Beya Wing Bay City for about eight hours now and I guess they're getting restless. That doesn't give them a reason to plot sabotage on the annoying couple in front of us, though. However, I can sort of agree with their reasoning. This couple is being excessively obnoxious. What with all their kissing, groping and porn star worthy moans. However, sticking sucked on Jolly Ranchers in their hair isn't anywhere close to a mature response.

"Hey Kan, how 'bout we put some on their seats when they head to the bathroom." Shen says, leaning over me to whisper in Kan's ear. I dry heave and shove him off of me. Kan smells like flowers compared to Shen.

"Who said they're heading to the bathroom?" Kan whispers back, leaning over me. I gag again. Okay…maybe not flowers.

"You know they're about to get nasty." Shen says back, smiling lewdly.

"You sayin' you wanna spy on them?" Kan asks, a similar lewd smile on his face. Wait…when did this conversation change from putting jolly ranchers on people's seats to watching them have sex in a bathroom? Maybe they don't have the brains of six year olds after all.

"Eh, guys…you do know you can go to jail for voyeurism?" I speak up quietly.

"Voyer what?" Kan asks, looking confused. "Stop being stupid Riku."

"Yeah Riku, stop being a douche." Shen says, shoving me with one of his fat elbows. I shove them both away from me and roll my eyes. Whatever, I don't care what they do. I reach under my seat into my carryon bag and grab my laptop and earphones. Thank god this plane offers internet service.

Once my computer is booted up, I immediately log on to the Beya Wing Bay City Extreme Sports Tournament site. The headlines are all generally uninteresting; all of them are about the dirt bike tournament currently going on. That is until I get to the third headline.

"Hey, it's that kid who used to live here." Shen says suddenly. I glanced at him and frown. I don't' want them to watch what I'm doing, especially with Sora concerned.

"Yeah," Kan starts, "He's really good. He's got the sickest moves I've ever seen."

"Hey, why'd he move?" Shen asks my brother. I perk up at this. Maybe Kan knows something about Sora I don't know.

"I heard he got adopted by a couple who live up in Jaguar Springs."

"No shit?! Jaguar Springs is freaking loaded! I bet you're lying."

_Jaguar Springs. _When you grow up on an island of upper middle-class to low high-class citizens, destinations like Jaguar Springs are talked about in excess. Not only is Jaguar Springs the most beautiful island in the world, it's also the wealthiest. It's the most sought after retirement place and most of its residents are billionaires ranging from age 50 on up. The idea that Sora, a poor foster kid, was adopted by someone in Jaguar Springs is almost unbelievable.

"Kan, don't be stupid." I suddenly speak up, "There's no way he would've been adopted by someone in Jaguar Springs. How the heck would someone in Jaguar Springs even find out about Sora?"

Kan frowns at both me and Shen and sticks a red jolly rancher in his mouth. "I ain't lying. Why don't you look it up if you really don't trust me?"

I don't trust him. So I immediately look it up, Kan and Shen breathing over my shoulders as I do. And to my utter amazement, several bio's on Sora pop up, all of them saying he was adopted at age thirteen by a young couple by the names of Aerith and Cloud Strife. The couple, though young, resides in Jaguar Springs. Both of them are well established doctors and are the primary health care providers of the residents of Jaguar Springs. The bios also state that Sora, though adopted, preferred to keep his last name and hadn't changed it from James-Maverick because his relationship with his parents is more like a sibling relationship.

"I told you." Kan says with a smirk. Shen punches him behind my head and they begin to wrestle, shoving me in the process. For once I ignore them and only because my eyes are trained on the article about Sora on the sports website. Holy fuck he's _hot. _

The article looks like it was meant to be posted on some girl magazine site or some other woman centric source. It is an article about the hottest sports stars at the event. Most of the athletes listed are girls, as this _was_ a site geared towards males; however there are a few boys listed, Sora being the only one that catches my attention. I feel like bowing down and worshipping the person who took the two photos of Sora that are featured. One of them is Sora after an event, his signature smile plastered on his face and his hand raised in a high five to a girl standing next to him. The other one…oh god…is one of him shirtless. My eyes are immediately drawn to the tight six pack he sports and the way his baggy jeans hang loosely on his slim hips…oh, and the downward v of his torso…my god and…

"Whoa! Or you checking him out?" Kan suddenly interrupts, causing me to jump and slam the screen of my laptop down at the same time.

"No!" I immediately protest, glaring at Kan. What an annoying piece of shit he is.

"Oh my god!" Shen exclaims, clapping a large hand against his equally large mouth. "He totally was salivating over his body!"

"Riku are you gay?" Kan asks, laughing as he says it. "You know I wouldn't be surprised if you were, I mean you do look like a girl and all."

"Shut the hell up, asshole." I mutter, sinking into my seat. There is no way in hell I will ever tell Kan or his stupid ass friend Shen that I am attracted to Sora. Not only would it ensure me a life of never ending torment, but it would also give Kan yet another reason to label me as a 'girl'.

"Riku," Shen says, clearing his throat like he has something important to say. "Please then explain to us why you were staring at his abs like they were candy."

I try to think up a believable reason that won't be completely gay. Well, it couldn't really get any gayer than what it was. But still!

"Uh, it's like….a man crush." I blurt out the first thing that comes to mind.

Both Shen and Kan stop laughing and are quiet for a second.

"Oh." Kan finally says. "Well that makes sense."

"Yeah, a man crush." Shen adds, nodding his head as if in understanding.

Ah, the ever loving man crush escape. As a straight male, it is indeed the most useful phrase to use in any 'gay misshapes'. If you accidently stare too long at a male, tell them it's a man crush. If you accidently say something looks good on a male, tell them it's a man crush. If you accidently say you wish you're some other male, tell them it's a man crush. The man crush escape will never let you down.

"Yeah…" I say hesitantly, hoping that they'll drop it. To my great relief they do and start kicking the seats of the couple in front of us who are now making some questionable and rather disgusting noises.

I open my laptop and return to looking at the article, though I scroll away from Sora's pictures to prevent them from thinking that I was lying about the man crush. The next group of photos also catch my attention, but these not for the same reason as the previous ones.

The night I discovered Sora was bisexual and dating this so called 'Axel Slade', I didn't think much of it. I was still somewhat denying my little crush for him and didn't think much on it. But now it's different. I'm not denying this little crush, so seeing the red-head in these pictures is a little unnerving. What bothers me the most about this Axel Slade is the cockiness in his smile and the way there are dozens of girls surrounding him in both of his pictures. It annoys me to think of Sora with this guy. I have no right to be annoyed about this situation, as Sora probably doesn't even remember me and I was his bully back in the day, but that doesn't stop me from feeling annoyed.

I skim through the next photos out of boredom and briefly note a certain blonde with the name of the guy Sora beat on television the other day. Like Axel, this one doesn't interest me as well. Only Sora.

"_Attention passengers, we are now approaching Beya Wing Bay City. Please return to your seats and fasten your seatbelts."_

My heart skips several beats as I quickly fasten my seat belt. We're here.

--

The first thing I notice about Beya Wing Bay City are the people. I'm from a very laidback island, but the people here are laidback to the extreme. I mean _everyone_ is smiling. Little kids are running around the clean and wide streets, playing games and laughing with each other. Couples are strolling hand in hand, shopkeepers have their doors and windows wide open. The restaurants and food stores have vendors outside offering free samples and joking with customers. To top all this, the sun is shining without a cloud in sight.

It's the prettiest place I've ever been to.

I stop staring for a second to make sure I haven't lost Kan and Shen. Lord knows, they might run off to play with some of the children and never come back. I notice them a few feet ahead of me talking to a friendly looking redheaded woman. I walk up as she's finishing giving directions.

"The hotel you're looking for is about a twenty minute walk from the games. I suggest you stop in to see the games in couple of hours, some really cool events are scheduled for tonight." Kan and Shen nod, acting strangely like adults, and thank her.

"Okay, well our hotel is about thirty minutes from here so we're going to have to catch a taxi." Kan says slowly.

We spend at least an hour trying to find a taxi because Kan cannot stand the color yellow and demanded we find a blue taxi which we find out from the driver the island has only five. We finally reach our hotel late afternoon and dump our stuff. We then head out and walk towards the events instead of risking the chance of not finding a blue taxi and not being able to go tonight. As we near the events, the streets become denser, loud music can be heard in the distance as well as the annoying sound of broadcasters.

Kan and Shen start to jump up and down excitedly, putting their VIP tickets in their little clear plastic holders that are attached to a lanyard around their necks. I do the same, not wanting to risk not getting in.

"Okay, we all have to stick together." Kan suddenly declares. "I can't risk losing you, Riku, mom will kill me."

I look at him and raise my eyebrow in amusement. Hell fucking no was I going to stay with Kan and Shen. I'm eighteen years old, a grown man. I didn't need my mentally younger older brother watching over me, or his idiot for a friend. The minute I get in there I'm going to make a break for the trailer section where I'm sure Sora is.

As we get nearer to the stadiums, we see several large guards blocking the entrances, only letting those with tickets inside. There are several booths and tents set up along the entrance selling merchandise and dozens of large flat screen TV's are attached to large signs so that people without tickets can still watch from outside. The music is now almost deafening, but I don't care. This atmosphere is definitely something different than home and I'm loving it.

Once we reach the gates, we show a friendly looking staff girl our tickets. "Oh! VIP how lucky, okay please go through this gate. You'll have the choice to enter the trailer area, the stands behind the stadium, or the stadium itself. You guys have second row seats and your numbers are on the tickets. Have fun!"

I smile back her, but only because my heart feels like it's about to burst with excitement. I glance at Kan and Shen and notice that they're completely mesmerized by some girl walking by. My chance to escape. I quickly dart inside the gate and search for the sign that says trailers, I locate it without much trouble and quickly make my way down the long path. As I near the trailers, the crowd of people starts to get thicker and I start to notice several athletes, recognizable by the different badges on their lanyards. I see several stars that I've seen on TV, and if Sora wasn't such a high priority, I'd probably be dashing around trying to get as many autographs as I could. But they don't matter. Only Sora.

As I enter the large field of trailers I suddenly feel a bit lost. How the hell am I supposed to find Sora in all this?! There are trailers _everywhere_, small trailers, large trailers, skinny trailers, fat trailers, flashy trailers and plain trailers. And with all these trailers are athletes, coaches, family, friends, and hundreds of other people with VIP tickets.

I'm about to turn around and look for any signs that might direct me to the right area when I bump into a person behind me.

"Hey, sorry…" I start to apologize when the other person glares at me.

"What the fuck?! Watch where you're going you lame-ass motherfucker." The blonde spits at me.

I scowl in annoyance. Who the fuck was this idiot? "What the hell is your problem?" I spit back. I don't have time for this. My mission is to find Sora, not fight with some stuck up prick that I happened to walk into.

"Fuckin' people like you getting in my fucking space. What are you, a fuckin' volunteer or some other lame shit person?"

Oh hell no. There is no way I'm going to just sit back and take this bastards attitude. Sora can wait five minutes while I beat his face in. "Like hell I'll ever tell you who I am you ugly ass shit for brains motherfucker!" The blonde glares at me, drops his stuff, and prepares to fight me. I do the same, but stop as soon as I hear _his_ voice.

"Guys, hey, I'm sure it was a misunderstanding." Comes a cool, laidback, friendly voice. It can't be any other than Sora's. I turn in the direction of his voice and hold back a gasp.

Sora is so _damn s_exy. Especially in person.

I suddenly feel stupid with my balled up fists and quickly back away from the angry blonde. The blonde in turn, spits at Sora's feet and walks off in a huff. I'm about to run after the idiot for acting so rudely towards Sora when his voice stops me again.

"Ah, that's just Roxas for you. He gets kinda moody sometimes, but he's cool." Sora says, looking off in the direction of Roxas's disappearing form.

"Yeah…" I mutter, suddenly trying desperately to find something to say. My anger with the blonde and Sora's sudden appearance has left my mind blank. I was planning to think up some long convincing speech for forgiveness, but now my mind has nothing, and this might be my only chance to talk to him!

Sora looks at me and pauses for a second. I look back and shuffle my feet awkwardly. He continues to stare at me, his eyebrows slowly scrunching together as if in confusion. After a few seconds of this I decide that it's time to go. My whole plan for begging his forgiveness flies out the window. He is _so _intimidating for some reason. I feel like I can't find a decent thing to say to him. I don't even know if he knows who I am.

"Uh…nice to meet you." I say slowly, turning around. Here I go, running away from my problems yet again. I feel so frustrated with myself I almost miss his gasp.

"Wait…" He says slowly, his voice still confused. I turn around and he's still staring at me with confusion, but then it slowly melts away and is replaced with recognition. His eyes suddenly light up and his eyebrows rise quickly.

Then he does it. He smiles that beautiful smile and before I know it he's right in front in of me.

"Riku?!" He exclaims, "Wow, it's been so long!"

And just like that I fall under Sora's loving spell. I should've known he'd never hold a grudge. He'd always treated me like his friend even though I hurt him. He'd always smiled at me, always encouraged me, and had always been kind. I should've known he wouldn't hate me, I should've known. But part of me wishes he did, part of me wishes he held some sort of resentment. I feel as if I need to earn his forgiveness and not be given it. But I erase these thoughts, as he suddenly grabs my arm.

"Hey do you remember me, I'm Sora from Vince Square, we used to be in the same grade together."

I nod and tell him I do and like we're friends he smiles and squeezes my arm before letting it go. It amazes me that he doesn't expect me to know him. It amazes me he simply says we were in the same grade and not 'you used to bully me.' It amazes me that he acts like it never happened.

"Hey, come back to my trailer for a sec, I want to know all about what's happened back home." He says before beckoning me to follow him.

And As I follow him through the maze of people I come to the decision that Sora isn't completely human. Any normal person would hate their childhood tormentor. Any normal person would probably avoid talking to them. Any normal person just wouldn't be acting like Sora.

Despite everything I put him through here he was treating me like a long lost friend and chatting to me like we've known each other all our lives. It's scary, sweet, unnerving, and warm but all together, it's a _good_ feeling.

But that's just what Sora is. Good.

--

Disclaimer: I don't own Jolly Ranchers. :)

A/N: Ah, I love break. The only reason this chapter is coming so soon after the last one is that I'm on break and I have the time to write some more chapters. I really wish I could update regularly, but I can't, so I hope these few new chapters can appease you for awhile. I'll probably post one more before break ends, and then it'll probably be back to once a month updates. Sorry. :(

In response to Shibara's review: I'm glad you agree! Even when I thought homosexual relationships were wrong, I felt there were some hidden hints to it in the game. I like your little example too, I haven't' played the game in forever so I forgot about that little part. Glad you liked the chapter!

In response to rutger5000's review: I can see your opinion on the whole gay thing. Especially because you're a straight guy. :) All of my guy friends feel the same way. So we can just agree to disagree. In response to the rest of your review, I can kind of see where you're right. The over elaborating part stems from the fact that this story is going to be so much shorter. In the Fallen Portrait I had more chapters available to elaborate in. I took that story very slow. This one I won't spend so much time on because it really just doesn't need it. It's a lighthearted story about a light romance, nothing heavy. So I guess coming after the Fallen Portrait and the Black Petal it seems a little rushed. I hope this makes sense. Oh, and you're not bothering me at all. I'm glad you're giving your opinion! I'd rather have your honest opinion than a fake one.

Anyway, thank you all for your reviews!


	5. Chapter 4: The Poison Known As Jealousy

Jealousy is a tiger that tears not only its prey but also its own raging heart

-Unknown

--

I rarely ever feel intimidated. For the majority of my life I've always had confidence. People adore me, so there is no real reason for me to feel uneasy and unsure around anyone. Yet, as my mother once told me a few years back, we all one day will meet someone who awes us, frightens us, and makes us jealous as hell. We all will be intimidated at one point in our life.

As I walk behind Sora listening to his cheerful one-sided conversation I feel completely and utterly unsure about myself. My confidence has completely deserted me leaving me with cold sweat and furious butterflies as my only companions. My mouth is dry, my hands sweating, and my mind a muddled mess. I haven't felt so pathetic in years.

Sora is bouncing ahead of me, almost skipping in his excitement. I have to wonder why. Why is he so excited? It can't be because of me.

"So I'm guessing you just graduated, right?" Sora suddenly asks, turning around to face me but continuing to walk, backwards.

I stumble a little and rub my sweaty hands on my jeans as I struggle to look him in the eyes. God, his eyes are so piercing. When I look at them I see a sea of blue surrounding a black island. They're stunning.

"Um yeah, just like three days ago." I mumble. "Eh…what about you?"

"I graduated a couple months ago, my parents home-schooled me. You planning on going to college?"

"Uh, yeah in the fall. I have a basketball scholarship to Forrest Hills. I don't know what I wanna study though."

At this, Sora's eyebrows shoot up and he smiles brightly. "Really?! Forrest Hills? I got turned down by them. You're super smart, that's awesome."

I almost blush at this comment. Almost.

"Anyway, here we are." Sora says stopping in front of an enormous black trailer with decorative graffiti sprayed in certain areas.

"I'm trying to get this entire thing full of graffiti by the end of the summer." Sora tells me, as I take in the intricate spray painted metal. Once again I feel very unsure of myself. Not only is Sora an extremely talented skateboarder, but he's also an amazing artist.

"You wanna come in?" Sora asks after a few moments of silence. He has his hands on the door to his trailer, a big smile planted on his face.

"Uh sure, yeah." I say quickly. God I sound so eager.

He smiles wider and beckons me forward, but doesn't open the door.

"Uh Sora…" I start, a little confused at his antics.

"When I open the door, run in." He tells me as he starts to turn the handle. "And be quick, okay, don't hesitate."

I frown. Why the heck is he acting so weird? Is there someone watching us or something? I can't think longer on the subject as Sora has opened the door. I hesitate briefly. I mean come on, I'm running into some guy's trailer and have no idea what might be inside it. I can't help that I'm cautious by nature.

Sora sends me look of utter terror and nearly screeches for me to get inside. I run, not willing to risk my thread-bare relationship with Sora. Once inside, I realize why he was being so ridiculously urgent about me getting inside quickly.

There are three little rodents bouncing from wall to wall inside the trailer. They're moving so fast I can't even tell what they are. Not being an animal lover, I immediately turn towards the door to run but instead smack right into Sora.

And…oh my god does he have a killer body…

"Sorry about that, one of these little guys got out yesterday and I nearly went insane trying to find him." Sora says, expertly catching one of the flying balls.

"W-what are they?" I mumble, trying to refrain myself from draping my body across his wonderfully muscled chest.

"Chipmunks." Sora says with a smile. "I saved them a couple of months ago. They were living in my backyard and the gardener was about to mow them over. I couldn't save their mother." He finished with a frown.

Note to self: frowns look absolutely horrible on Sora.

"I'm sorry." I say pathetically, not sure what to say in this situation.

"It's okay." Sora says, catching another chipmunk. "I'm just glad I saved these little guys. This one's Mimi. This one's actually a girl." He says, handing me one of the rodents.

I hold back a screech and struggle not to drop the little thing. I admit, I'm scared of anything resembling a mouse in anyway. Ever since I was young, I've hated rodents. It started with my brothers putting a dead mouse in my bed one night when I was eight. I haven't been comfortable around them since.

"So," Sora started, gesturing me towards the chipmunk's cage in the corner of his massive trailer. "How's everyone back home?"

I place the little chipmunk in the cage and breathe a sigh of relief when Sora drops the other two in. "I don't believe animals should be locked up for long." Sora says as he shuts the cage.

I nod and think back to his question. Would Sora even remember any of his old classmates? Would he _want_ to remember any of them?

"Um, I dunno, who do you remember?" I ask after a moment.

Sora shrugs and moves over to a stainless steel refrigerator that is packed with all kinds of junk food. "Everybody." He answers. "You want something to drink?"

"Uh sure." I answer. He asks me what I want and I request water. My throat is suddenly drier than the desert and I desperately need something to cool me down.

"So…?" He says slowly, coaxing me to talk. I gulp down the water.

"Uh…well, I dunno. You remember Kairi?" I ask after swallowing half the bottle of water.

"Oh yeah, the pretty red-head? I remember her." Sora says with a smile.

"Yeah we dated for awhile." I say, thinking back to the years I spent with Kairi. I'm glad to say I no longer miss her, but it was fun while it lasted.

"Really?" Sora asks with a sad frown. Ah Sora, always worried about other people's feelings. Here we are, him a famous skateboarder, me his ex-bully, talking about my ex-girlfriend who also harassed him to no end. It just doesn't make sense.

"Yeah, we ended it about a year ago. It was for the best." I say quickly trying to change the subject. I really don't want to talk about my home; I'm more interested in what Sora is doing and apologizing for my past behavior.

"Oh." Sora says taking a sip of his energy drink.

"Look, I want to tell you something." I force out, my hands trembling under the table. This might be my only chance to apologize and I am not going to blow it.

However, before Sora can answer, the door to his trailer is flung open and a tall, lanky red head strides in with a cocky grin plastered on his face. Upon realizing who he is, my face grows hot and something inside me boils. I can feel the nasty enrapturing feeling of jealousy starting to ease into my heart and I feel angry all of the sudden.

"Hey baby." The red-head says sultrily wrapping his arms around Sora's neck from behind. "Who ya talking to?" He asks, sending a glare at me. I glare right back.

"Ah, Riku this is my boyfriend Axel, Axel this is my childhood friend Riku."

My eyebrows shoot up at this. Childhood _friend? _Sora is too kind for his own good. I can tell that Axel see's something up as he frowns at my expression.

"This doesn't happen to be one of the bastards that beat you up, is it?" Axel asks Sora, eyeing me from head to toe.

"Eh…" Sora started, glancing at me with sad eyes. "He's changed a lot." Ah Sora, never one to lie but always one to think the best of others. This admission however does not appease his obviously possessive boyfriend. Axel's arms tighten around Sora's neck and he glares daggers at me.

"If you so much as touch him I'll fucking kill you." He spits at me. Now, normally I would've spat something right back at him as I never back down from a fight, however, this time is different. I want to win Sora's friendship and well, possibly more. He already saw me start to fight with that Roxas jerk, I don't want him to think I'm a violent and uncouth person. So instead I suck it in and nod my head.

"Good." Axel says with a smirk and then proceeds to sicken me with his public displays of affection. I am forced to endure about thirty seconds of seeing him scatter little butterfly kisses all over Sora's neck while whispering several cringe worthy terms of endearment. If Sora wasn't so hot I'd puke.

Speaking of Sora, said man seems to be in some sort of lovesick daze and my jealousy spikes at this. In my frustration, I accidently kick my leg against the side of the table, knocking Sora out of his trance like state.

"Axel-babe, you're being rude." Sora says, flustered after realizing I'm still here. I glance at my hands. I feel like an outsider that just intruded on something very intimate that I wasn't supposed to see. I feel as if I should leave now.

"Um…I'll just go…" I say, starting to stand up. Sora's eyes widen and he shrugs Axel off of him much to Axel's obvious dislike.

"I'm sorry, I'm so sorry. That was really rude." Sora says, rubbing his hands anxiously over his arms. "Don't leave." He almost pleads with me. All thought's of leaving run out my mind at this small request. Like hell would I ever leave if Sora wanted me to stay.

Axel sends me an angry look from behind Sora and walks towards the door. "My first event is in an hour, you said you'd watch." He says, glaring at Sora in anger.

Sora frowns in confusion. "I did, and I am." He answers him, walking towards his upset boyfriend. "Hey," he whispers, pulling the taller boy into a hug. "Don't get mad at me, I was just talking to a friend."

Axel sighs and hugs Sora back, pulling the shorter boy off his feet in the process. "I know…I…I'm sorry for getting all possessivey."

Sora giggles at his non-existent word and leans up and kisses his cheek. The jealousy in my heart flares up once again. "I'll be in the first row, okay babe?"

Axel nods, kisses Sora softly on the lips and exits the trailer. I am _so_ happy to see him go.

Sora glances up at me looking a bit nervous. "I guess you hate me now." He states quietly.

My eyes grow wide. Hate him? Where the hell is he getting that idea?

"Why do you think I hate you?" I ask, searching his face for answers.

"Well you always kinda…well, I dunno, I'm bisexual and I just sort of made out with my boyfriend in front of you…who is straight."

Oh.

Guilt suddenly hits me like a tidal wave. I can distinctly remember making fun of several effeminate boys in school. I called them horrible names and mocked them for being gay. How could I forget that? Now Sora thinks that I hate him for being bisexual when in reality I'm probably bisexual myself.

"Um, that's fine. I don't mind." I say quickly.

Sora smiles and blushes ever so slightly. "It…besides being awkward…didn't bother you?" He asks me quietly.

I shake my head no. "I actually…well before Axel came in I was trying to tell you something." I start, wringing my hands together.

My conversation is interrupted once again by another person opening the trailer doors. This time it's a young blonde girl. "Hey Sora, you should probably come on now, Axel's event is starting soon and it's getting crowded.

Sora nods and smiles at the girl. "Thanks Nami, I'll be right out." He turns to me and gestures me towards the door. "You wanna come, I don't know if you're into BMX but I think you might like it."

I nod immediately. I feel a little upset though, not being able to apologize to him. Like the ever observant person he is, Sora notices this.

"Hey, we can talk after the event. We can go out and get coffee or something, sound good?"

"Yeah…sounds good." I say with a genuine smile. Sora smiles back and pauses for a second as if he wants to say something, but he doesn't and turns towards the door.

"We better hurry; it's a long walk towards the BMX stadium and I think my little golf cart thingy already left with my teammates."

I follow him outside into the setting sun and he starts rambling once again about nothing in particular, his eyes shining and his hands gesturing wildly. He can't stop smiling and I don't want him to. His smile is more beautiful than the sunset above us.

And suddenly my mood is ruined by the horrible feelings of jealousy that arise in my heart when I think of Sora and Axel together. Before I got here I didn't think it would be such a problem, but here it is staring me in the face. I've never been a very jealous person because I've usually had everything I've ever wanted. But here Sora is, the friendliest and most forgiving person I've ever met, and he is taken.

My heart feels like its being choked by my envy. They weren't lying when they said jealousy is a bitch.

--

A/N: Ah, the lovely plot chapters. Not my favorite to write and I bet not a favorite to read, but they are necessary. As you can see, this chapter was made specifically to lay down aspects of the plot of the story. It's necessary, so don't chew me out about it.

School has started again and I feel like I'm drowning in homework. Right now I'm procrastinating. I'm definitely going to fail something tomorrow. Eh, the life of a college student.

Anyway, enjoy and review!


	6. Chapter 5: The Perfect Date That Wasn't

Wise men say, only fools rush in. But I can't help falling in love with you.

-Elvis Presley

--

It's 3 AM in the morning and I can't sleep. My eyes feel like daggers have made a home in them and my head is pounding from lack of sleep. I haven't slept in a day due to the time change here in Beya Wing Bay City and I feel like I'm about to go insane from it all.

The time difference isn't really the problem here, though. I guess I'm exaggerating. You see it really has nothing to do with me be up so late suffering. It's actually something much worse.

I have fallen in fucking love.

I haven't felt this feeling in a long time, and the way it snuck up on me like a cat to a mouse is what is really frightening. It's really horrible, this feeling. But, it's so _good _too. I can't really explain it; I just know it's a problem. It seems so wrong to love someone only to know they love someone else.

Well I don't like to give people good credit because it's not in my nature to commend others, but I'd be a damned fool if I said Sora hadn't made last night the best night of my life. I wouldn't call it a date, because that would be a lie, but it definitely felt like it.

Upon entering the stadium, Sora had told the ticket checkers that I was with him and we headed to his front row seats which unfortunately happened to be directly across the stadium from Kan and Shen. Since my silver hair is a rarity, my brother immediately noticed and started screaming from across the way to get my ass over there before he'd beat the muscle out of it. Of course I ignored him. We then proceeded to watch three hours of the ridiculous sport known as freestyle BMX. Sora was so into it he could barely keep his butt on the bench. And I was so into watching Sora's butt leave the bench…that thought aside Sora's annoying and possessive boyfriend made the semifinals like the crowd expected, and thus the night of BMX ended and the hoopla about the finals began.

Axel immediately went to doing interviews and signing autographs and Sora told me he wouldn't be seeing him again that night because Axel liked to hang out with his teammates after tournaments. So instead, we were going to hang out. I should've felt used, but thinking back I just felt happy to have Sora to myself.

As he mentioned in the trailer, I thought we were simply going out to coffee. But Sora being Sora had thought up of something else more 'exciting.'

"Come on; let's go to this hobby shop in the village square." Sora had said as we exited the stadium and into the VIP walkways.

"Hobby shop...?" I asked him with a confused frown. "Isn't that like…a toy store?"

"Yeah." Sora said simply, like it was normal for two eighteen year old guys to go to a toy store together.

"Okay…what are we gonna do there?" I asked him as we continued to walk in the direction of his trailer.

"Look at the stuff, of course." Sora said with a laugh.

"Uh…but isn't most of the stuff there kiddy stuff?"

"Some of it, but there's a lot of interesting things there too."

"Okay, if you say so." I said, not knowing what else to say. Thirty minutes later found us walking the busy streets of the Village Square. During the events, most of the city shops stayed open 24/7 as did the residents stay awake. There was music playing and paper lanterns of every color imaginable swaying softly in the night breeze. The smell of sugary food and popcorn wafted through the air as did the voices of excited people and the sounds of water falling from the numerous fountains lining the sidewalk. All in all, it was a great moment to be alive.

Because it was after dark, not many people noticed Sora who had tied his spiky hair back into a high ponytail and changed his clothes before we left. Granted, there were a few love struck girls who stopped us asking for autographs and inquiring what sport I was participating in (Which unlike my usual self, I told the truth and said I was a fan) but pretty much the whole night we were left alone.

"Here we are." Sora said eagerly and stopped us abruptly in front of the brightest looking store I had ever seen. There were so many lights on this building I feared it would cause a shortage in the city. Paper lanterns of so many shapes and sizes decorated the outside of the building but they couldn't match the blaring lights of the many light up toys in the shop. I swear I've never seen so many playthings in my life.

When we stepped inside, Sora's demeanor immediately changed to that of a child and started bouncing around the store excitedly looking at everything. I watched him in fascination as he felt soft things, turned automated toys on and off, bounced bouncy objects, squished squishy objects and laughed at cute toys. It was odd they way he acted and I voiced my thoughts, as I usually do. His answer made me immediately regret it.

"Why are you so excited over simple children's playthings?" I had asked with an amused chuckle.

Sora had glanced at me and I could see his grin waver for a second. "I don't know." He started, stroking a stuffed animal. "I guess it's because I never had this stuff when I was little."

I immediately felt guilty. Of course he hadn't had these things. He had no parents to give him these things and nobody that cared enough about him to give him these things. The only 'toy' I had ever seen him with was his beat up skateboard that he had found in a dumpster. That's probably why he's so good at what he does now, that skateboard was his only plaything.

"I'm sorry." I told him, sincerely. "I didn't mean to make fun of you."

"It's fine." Sora said with a smile. "I was probably better off without these things anyway."

"No, every kid deserves to have toys." I said quickly and firmly. It didn't seem right for a child to go without such basic and simple things as play toys. It was just wrong.

Sora smiled and fingered the ear of a stuffed tiger. "That's sweet." He said softly.

I hoped to god I wasn't blushing, but I'm sure I was. We walked around the store in silence for a bit before Sora's eyes lit up as we reached a display near the center of the store.

"I love these!" He said, rushing up and grabbing a handful of white sticks. I picked one up and couldn't hold back a smile. Glow sticks.

"I remember these." I said, looking around for the store owners before snapping one. A bright green light suddenly flared up at me and Sora giggled like a child. He's way too cute for his own good.

"I want some of the long ones." He said, grabbing around ten skinny foot long glow sticks. "I want to braid them."

I grabbed some as well, not wanting to be left out. We wandered around the store some more, Sora randomly picking up little gadgets and asking me what you did with them. Simple things that I assumed all kids had seen and played with Sora had no clue what they were. He was especially confused by the game Jacks.

"Hey Riku, what are these little spiky things?" Sora had asked me, picking up a Jack game in a netted bag.

"Oh, those are jacks." I said picking up a similar bag.

"What do you do with them?" Sora asked, cocking his head to the side in curious matter.

"You spread the spikey things out on the ground and bounce the ball. The object is to gather up as many jacks as you can before the ball bounces a second time."

"Oh." Sora said softly. He studied the bag in his hand before raising his eyes to meet me in a shy manner. "Would you teach me how to play?"

I smiled and nodded. "Yeah, of course."

With that, Sora and I headed back towards the front to purchase our items. Once purchased, we headed outside only and started walking down the cobblestone streets, enjoying the sights and smells. I decided that this was the perfect time to apologize for my past actions and was determined not to let anything or anyone interrupt.

"Hey Sora?" I said as we neared a large fountain with children playing around it.

"Yeah?" He said perkily while snapping one of his glow sticks.

"I wanted to…well I need to…I…" I started, mumbling and stuttering and feeling like a fool. Sora stopped playing with his glow stick and gave me his full attention. That only made me more nervous.

"I wanted to say I'm sorry. I…I treated you wrong back home and I need to apologize." As soon as I had said it, something in Sora's eyes lit up like I'd never seen before. It was a combination of shock, sadness, happiness but most importantly, forgiveness.

"I…" He started softly, fiddling with the glow stick in his hand. "Thank you for saying that." I nodded, not sure what to say to that. Your welcome would only be cocky and stupid.

"Not many people have said that to me, so…thank you. But just so you know, I forgave you a long time ago, Riku." Sora told me with a soft smile.

"I don't deserve it." I told him, looking him straight in the eyes as I said it. As hard as it was for me to admit my wrong doing, I wanted to show him I wasn't lying and that I was honestly sorry.

"Yes you do." Sora said, touching my arm. I almost melted at the touch. It still amazes me that such a simple touch would make my heart feel like it was dropping several stories. "Now come on, we're friends now, so let's have fun."

And with that, Sora pointed to a nearby candy stand and bounced over to it with excitement. I followed behind him, the words "we're friends" echoing through my head. Sora must have the biggest heart in the world, no doubt. If I were in his shoes, I would've laughed at my apology. I could never be as forgiving as Sora.

As I caught up to him, Sora pushed something skinny and hard into my hand. "These things never taste really good, but for some reason they make the world seem a little brighter." Sora told me as I observed the swirl lollipop in my hand. It was true, swirl lollipops (as distasteful as they were) had always been eye catchers and made me and little kids alike smile in happiness.

Sora was special. He noticed _everything._

We continued down the streets, talking about nothing in particular and generally just enjoying each other's company. He told me about his tournaments, I told him about my last basketball season. He told me about his favorite subject in school, English, and I told him about my least favorite subject, English. We talked about animals, children, cars, boats, beaches, ski slopes, food, music and so on.

Eventually, when our conversation finally tapered off, we found ourselves near a high school a ways off from the village square. We had somehow entered the residential park of the city and had no clue where we were.

"Sora I think we're lost." I told him, stupidly stating the obvious.

He nodded, looking around himself in thought. "I'll just call my driver and tell him to pick us here." He said, after reading the name of school on a nearby entryway. He quickly dialed his driver's number and told him our location.

"He'll be here in about an hour." He told me, as he put his cell phone back in his pocket. "There's a lot of traffic downtown."

"Crap, we shouldn't have talked to so much." I said with a sigh.

Sora only shrugged his shoulders. "Hey, I was having fun and I think you were too, so it was worth getting lost."

He was right. I was having the most fun I had had in years with him. Plus, when I thought about it, being lost with him might not be so bad. Actually, it was _really _good.

"Let's go sit on the bleachers." Sora said, breaking me out of my thoughts. I turned to where he was pointing and nodded. The high school football field was off in the distance, its glaring lights like a flashlight leading us in the right direction. I noted that this high school must be a wealthy one because the field was just a bit smaller than a pro field.

When we reached the bleachers, Sora seemed to have suddenly changed his mind and instead ran out into the middle of the field laughing like a little kid. I followed him at a slower pace, not sure if I should join in on his fun.

"You know what would be fun?" Sora asked me as he stopped in the middle of the field.

"What?"

"If we played glow stick tag." Sora said with an excited grin. I swear his grins are contagious because I couldn't help but grin back at him.

"It's too light, though." I told him after a moment's thought.

"We can turn of the lights, I'm sure there's a switch somewhere." Sora said, heading towards the entrance of the field. I followed him, and sure enough there was a switch to the lights near the team bleachers.

"Snap all of the glow sticks first." I reminded him, before we were to be encased in darkness.

"Oh right." Sora said, snapping his glow sticks and braiding them together to get something that resembled a wand. I did the same with mine.

"Alright, ready, set, go!" He yelled, switching off the lights. Suddenly all I could see was two glowing sticks. And then one of them took off running. It almost felt surreal, running around in the dark of night with only glow sticks and a billion stars to light our world. All I could hear was Sora's laughs, the sound of the grass under our shoes, the wind blowing softly and my own heart racing from both running hard and the love I suddenly felt for Sora. It came so suddenly I collapsed in the grass, my heart refusing to stop hammering.

"Tag! Sora yelled, before falling over me. "Gotcha!"

My heart which was hammering fast before now was beating a mile minute. Sora had his arms wrapped around my waist and I had to resist the urge to wrap mine around his. Sora quickly realized our awkward position, and pulled away before it could get any more awkward.

"Uh, sorry." He said quickly. I could hear the blush in his voice and wished I could see it.

"It's okay." I said quickly. Sitting up on my elbows. Sora sat next to me and fiddled with his glow stick. We were silent for several minutes, both enjoying the darkness, the stars and the quietness of the world right now. I can honestly say that in that moment everything seemed _right._ I was with Sora, he didn't hate me and we had just done some random things that were more fun than a coffee date could ever be. It was almost perfect.

"I had fun tonight." He said softly, making me glance in the direction of his voice.

I smiled widely, glad for the darkness that masked my face. "So did I." I told him honestly.

Sora didn't say anything for a moment and I almost thought I had said something wrong when he spoke up again. "Are you staying till the end of the tournaments?"

"Yeah, I believe so. I'm with my brother and his friend and they want to see everything."

Sora was quiet again, but I could tell he was thinking hard about something because he kept batting his glow sticks in a nervous manner. "I skate in my next tournament tomorrow, will you come watch?"

"Of course." I told him without hesitation. He was the reason I was here in the first place, I wouldn't dare miss him skate.

"Really? Great!" Sora said, as if he didn't believe I would come. I felt a little saddened by this. "We should probably try and find an exit. My driver will be here soon." Sora said, standing up. We stumbled around in the dark for several minutes trying to locate an exit without ramming ourselves into the bleachers. Eventually we found our way to an exit, switched on the lights and headed out just in time to see Sora's limo pull up.

Sora's driver dropped me off at my hotel, Sora telling me to come hang out at his trailer in the morning and wishing me a good night's rest as I stepped out of the car. I rode the elevator up to my room in a lovesick haze, Sora's smile on my mind and a lollipop and glow sticks in my hand.

I ignored my brother's angry yells and Shen's annoyed grunts as I made my way to my separate room. I couldn't think of anything but Sora as I got ready for bed. Nothing else mattered but Sora.

Which is why I'm lying here in bed, unable to fall asleep because of my feelings towards said boy. I want to spend more hours talking about nothing with Sora, I want to know his feelings and his thoughts, I want to be his best friend and much more. I _want_ Sora.

But the truth of the matter is I can't have him.

He's Axel's boyfriend.

And that's why my eyes won't close tonight. That's why I can't sleep. I didn't think I'd fall so hard for him. I thought it was only a crush but now I know I'm so wrong. Now it's something much worse than a crush. It's much worse than the scary feeling of being in love. Oh, the worst thing in life must be what this is. Unrequited love.

So I won't sleep tonight. My heart is beating too hard and dropping too fast to let me.

--

A/N: Another chapter. Yay. This is my ideal date, everyone. This is my idea of a great date. I would love to go out to a hobby store and then run around in a field in the middle of the night with glow sticks. Anyway.

Hope you enjoy, and I hope to update soon.

Review please!


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